


blue eyes and snowy skies

by lulumina



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Abusive Relationships, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Established Relationship, Eventual Lapis Lazuli/Peridot (Steven Universe), F/F, Human Jasper (Steven Universe), Human Lapis Lazuli (Steven Universe), Human Peridot (Steven Universe), Implied Jasper/Lapis Lazuli (Steven Universe), Jasper isn't a good person, Sickfic, Swearing, Verbal Abuse, or a good girlfriend, there's a verbally abusive relationship so if that upsets you please don't read
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-27
Updated: 2018-11-21
Packaged: 2019-08-08 05:47:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,709
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16423574
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lulumina/pseuds/lulumina
Summary: It's a cold, snowy evening and Lapis is distracted when she almost hits a girl in a thin green flannel with her car. She gets out to make sure she's okay, but feels obliged to help once she sees the hypothermic state Peridot is in. Lapis takes the girl to her house to warm up and call a friend, but her plans change when a blizzard hits and they're stuck for a night in at Lapis's apartment.Rated teen for language and an iffy relationship between Jasper and Lapis.Enjoy!





	1. Chapter 1

Lapis Lazuli shifted her sleeves of her coat to cover her palms as she tapped on the steering wheel of her car, waiting for the light to turn green.

It was the middle of the winter, and the perfect time for Lapis’s car heater to be malfunctioning. She banged on the dashboard until it crackled to life, greeting her with a blast of freezing air straight to the face.

“Shit,” she hissed, and cranked the dial to the warmest setting. It may not have been the smartest idea, but she was cold, damn it, and she would rather spend ten minutes in a hot car than in a cold one. She pulled her scarf up around her neck and sighed.

The light turned to green and she moved forward, mind clouded with thoughts about her Art History paper that was due in a few days and how Jasper wanted to hang out tonight even though Lapis had protested that she really needed some alone time and-

HEY!” a shrill voice yelled.

Lapis gasped and slammed on the breaks. The snow swirling in front of her windshield revealed a figure standing, indignant in the crosswalk. A girl (it seemed) with messy blonde hair and glasses, wearing a thin-looking green flannel and no coat. She seemed to be shouting more things, but the wind and snow carried her voice away before it could reach Lapis’s ears.

Lapis quickly rolled her window down to apologize and ask if she was okay, but she was already stalking back to the sidewalk.

Lapis hadn’t been paying attention, and if she was responsible for someone else’s almost-getting-hit-by-a-car, the least she could do was check up on them. But the horns honking angrily behind her and the icy wind whipping her face prevented her from doing so. She reluctantly rolled up her window and drove forward before taking one final look at the girl.

She was leaning against the traffic light pole, arms tightly crossed and shivering.

Fuck, Lapis thought. She doesn't look too good.

After a moment of deliberation, Lapis wrenched the wheel and took a left, parking on the side of the road and steeling herself before opening the car door and greeting the chilly winter weather. She stuffed her hands in her pockets and rushed to the girl’s side.

“Hi… I think I may have almost bumped you with my car back there. Are you okay?”

The girl slowly turned her head to look up at Lapis, who was a few inches taller than her. Her green eyes were dull, but still focused on Lapis’s brown ones with a fierce determination.

“I’m fine,” she hissed. “No th-thanks to you almost r-runnin’ me over.” She muttered something under her breath that sounded like “clod” and turned her head away. Lapis brushed off the insult and pushed further.

“Are you sure? It’s frigid out here, and you aren’t wearing a jacket…”

“I’m _f-fine! _Will you p-please just leave m-me alone?” The girl shivered ferociously- _she must be freezing in that tiny flannel.___

“Is there anyone I can call? A friend? You don’t look too good.” The girl’s nose and cheeks were bright pink, and her lips were tinged with blue. Her words were starting to slur over the stutters.

The girl drew herself up to her full height (short) and looked Lapis dead in the eye. “I j-just told, you, _clod _, I-” she tried to take a step forward, but lost her footing and fell. Lapis reacted quickly, thrusting her arms out to catch the freezing girl. They both crumpled to the snowy sidewalk, Lapis holding the shivering girl in her arms.__

“Ohhhh my god, holy fuck, are you okay?” _Lapis, you goddamn idiot, does she look okay? _“I’ll call 911. You may have hypothermia or something. We can go to my car quick, it’s probably still warm… I think I have a blanket in the trunk… is that okay?”__

The girl nodded and curled up into a ball, head resting on Lapis’s chest. She felt her face go red.

_Not the time, Lapis. Just ignore the fact that a cute girl is cradled in your arms and take care of the matter at hand._

Lapis gently scooped the girl up bridal-style, slowly rising off the ground. She had no fucking clue how to take care of a hypothermic person, but she knew you generally shouldn’t make any quick or jerky movements with people who were sick. The girl was surprisingly light, and Lapis carried her to the car and deposited her into the passenger seat without much trouble. She fetched the blanket from her trunk and tucked it up around her shoulders before fastening her seatbelt and sliding into the front seat. Lapis started the car, cranked the heat up, and made sure all the doors were shut tight. She moved to grab her phone… before she remembered that it had died earlier that day.

_Shit._

“Hey, uh, do you happen to have a phone on you?” Lapis asked the girl. “I need to call 911.”

The girl shook her head.

“You don’t have a phone?”

She shook her head again.

“Great,” Lapis sighed. “I guess, uh, do you want to come to my place? I can, I don’t know, make you soup or something?

“That’s o-okay,” the girl slurred. “I’m w-warmer now, I’ll just b-be on my way-” she reached out a trembling hand to open the car door, but Lapis had already locked it.

“No way. You look like you’re about to pass out. You either come with me to my apartment-I can make some warm food, charge my phone and you can call a friend- or I drop you off at the hospital. Your choice.”

“N-not the hospital. I’m fiiiiine, promisssse.”

_The cold seems to be messing with her head._

“Okay. My house is a couple minutes away.” Lapis peeled out from the sidewalk and headed back down the road, towards her apartment. “Uh, what’s your name?”

“P-Peridot.”

“Okay, Peridot. My name is Lapis Lazuli. We’re gonna get you warmed up in no time.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peridot warms up in Lapis's apartment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm not feeling super satisfied with the way this story is heading- i may scrap it if i feel the same way after the next few chapters, or rewrite it completely. for now, though, enjoy the new update!

Lapis spent the entire car ride home glancing over at Peridot, making sure she wasn’t dead or that her nose hadn’t fallen off from the cold. A few minutes in, Peridot had wrapped the blanket tighter around herself and seemed to be rubbing warmth into her fingers underneath the covering. Her face was still flushed, but her blue lips were fading to more of a purple-pink. Her eyes were closed, and it made the dark circles underneath them even more prominent. 

Lapis pulled into her parking spot, helped Peridot up the stairs and unlocked her apartment door. She directed Peridot to the couch and handed her a stack of blankets, then took her coat, scarf and boots off and headed to the kitchen to heat up a can of chicken noodle soup. While the broth was warming, she plugged her phone in and waited for it to juice up. She grabbed a change of clothes for Peridot, directing her to her bedroom to change. 

In just a few minutes, Peridot was dry and re-wrapped in a blanket on the couch. Lapis checked on the status of her phone and the soup. Both almost done.

She poked her head into the living room to ask if Peridot had any allergies and noticed that her eyes were open and blurrily surveying the room. 

“You have a nice place,” Peridot commented, the stutter and slur almost gone. 

Lapis smiled and shook her head. “Not really, but thanks.”

“No, I’m serious. It’s homey,” Peridot insisted, gesturing up to the fairy lights strung around the walls. “It makes me feel cozy.”

“Oh. Thank you.” Lapis surveyed her living room. She had never really taken the time to notice the finer details of her apartment- it was small, just one bedroom, a bathroom, kitchen, and living room. Her first couple years of school she had lived in dorms, but spending time with all those people every single day drove her insane. She managed to find an inexpensive place, shabby as it was, about 20 minutes from campus. Jasper had offered for Lapis to stay with her a few months into their relationship, but Lapis politely declined. This was one space where she was allowed to be alone. 

Now Lapis noticed what might have caused Peridot to say that. The floor was scattered with colorfully mismatched rugs, since Lapis hated bare feet on a cold floor. She had hung various art prints (some of her own best work as well) around the room, to soften the harsh white walls. The furniture was worn and soft- sitting on the couch often felt like you were sinking into a marshmallow. (It was Lapis’s favorite place to sit and watch Netflix.) Pillows and blankets were strewn throughout the room, available from every angle to grab and cuddle up with. In one corner of the living room sat a desk covered in sketchbooks and bins of art supplies, lit by a soft white table lamp. 

_ I guess it is comfy in here.  _

Lapis looked back at Peridot. “Question. Are you allergic to anything?”

“Nope,” Peridot yawned. “Just getting hit by cars.” Her eyes were starting to droop, and it looked as if she was falling asleep. 

Lapis chuckled at the remark and reentered the kitchen. She checked on the soup, bubbling merrily away in its saucepan. She pulled out a couple bowls and spoons from the cupboard, then leaned on the counter and closed her eyes.

_ Peridot seems to be on track for recovery, and once she’s finished her soup she can call a friend and get picked up. After she’s gone, I can work on my history paper and tidy up the kitchen before going to bed. _

Lapis served up the soup and brought it out to Peridot, who was still dozing. Once she woke up, they ate it together quietly and watched the snow fall outside the window. Peridot seemed to be empty of all her earlier snark and sass, quietly spooning broth into her mouth and not meeting Lapis’s eye. Lapis didn’t know what to say, so she joined Peridot in an awkward silence. 

A few minutes in, Peridot cleared her throat. “So. Uh. Why did you offer for me to come here? You could have just dropped me off at the hospital…” 

“Oh, I don’t know. You said you didn’t want to see a doctor, and it was a shorter drive to get here anyway.”

Peridot nodded and continued to eat.

“Okay, now I get to ask a question. Why were you alone in the cold with no jacket?”

Peridot put her spoon back in the bowl. “I missed the bus and didn’t want to wait another half an hour in the cold.”

Lapis frowned. “Are you serious? You could have died out there. It was below freezing!”

Peridot shrugged. “But, I didn’t. Because you saved me. So… thank you.”

Lapis felt herself blush. “It was nothing. I was in the right place at the right time. No biggie.”

Peridot seemed to have no interest in continuing the conversation, so they finished their soup over small talk. They discovered that they both went to the same college, but Peridot was studying biotechnology and Lapis was an art major. They were the same age, surprisingly, but Peridot had been bumped up a grade in middle school. They were both cat people, even though Peridot was allergic. They continued dinner in this fashion, learning odd tidbits about each other and marveling at how much they had in common.

Once their bowls were scraped clean, Lapis collected the dishes and went to the kitchen to grab her cell phone for Peridot to use.

She politely stayed in the next room while Peridot was calling her friends. She pulled the curtains back from the kitchen window and watched the silent snowfall settle onto the roads and sidewalk a few stories below. It was that eerie time of night in the winter, when the skies were ink black and the murky glow of the street lamps mixed with steady falling snowflakes made time feel like smooth jelly. 

_ The roads don’t look too good… hopefully Peridot’s friends will be able to get out here.  _

After the conversation was over, Peridot wandered into the kitchen holding Lapis’s phone out in front of her.

“Who’s Jasper?” she asked, still wrapped tightly in a blanket. “You’ve got a shitload of missed calls from them.”

Lapis felt her heart sink. She snatched the phone from Peridot’s hand and felt it buzz as another call came in. She quickly picked up and pressed it to her ear.

“H-hello?”

“Lapis, oh my god. Where are you and why weren’t you answering my calls?” Jasper’s voice shouted from the speaker.

“My phone was dead… I’m sorry. I’m at home. I’m okay,” Lapis responded.

“Oh, good. I was nervous. Anyway, I won’t be able to come over tonight. The roads are way too bad. I’ll be there first thing tomorrow morning, though, once they’ve been plowed. You’re sure you’re okay alone?”

Lapis nodded. “That’s alright. I won’t have class until later. And yes, I’ll be okay.”

“Good. I love you, baby.”

“I love you too.”

Lapis waited until the dial tone sounded before pressing the end call button.

Peridot stared at her, frowning. “Why didn’t you tell her I was here?”

“Oh… I guess I forgot. It’s okay though, I’ll fill her in later. What did your friends say?” 

“The snow is too bad for them to drive. They said they could pick me up in the morning, though. Or I can just Uber. Is it… alright for me to stay here?” Peridot wrapped the blanket tighter. 

“Of course! Where else would you be, on the street?”

“No. No, I mean… will your- uh-” Peridot hesitated. 

“Girlfriend,” Lapis supplied. 

“Yes, your girlfriend. Will she be okay with me spending the night?”

“Oh… Yes, I’m sure it’ll be fine. I’ll explain it to her when she gets here. She’ll understand.” 

Peridot nodded without saying anything. The whole situation didn’t seem quite right to her. 

“Do you want to watch a movie or something?” Lapis suggested.

Peridot, sensing Lapis didn’t want to discuss her relationship, let the matter go and smiled. “Sure.”

They settled on the couch and flipped through Netflix. Lapis glanced over to see Peridot shivering slightly and looking around for extra blankets. 

“Are you still cold?” Lapis asked, concerned.

“No! No, I’m fine,” Peridot insisted.

Lapis raised an eyebrow.

“Well… maybe I’m a little chilly.”

Lapis swallowed and took a leap of faith. “Do you want to share a blanket or something? Body heat is probably good to help you feel warmer…”

“Oh. Sure.”

Peridot carefully unwrapped herself from the blanket and held it open for Lapis to scoot in. They tentatively pressed their legs and torsos together, and Peridot shuddered.

“Ooh, you’re warm,” she remarked.

“Glad I could help.”

One horror movie, a large bowl of popcorn, and a handful of frightened shrieks later, Lapis and Peridot were exhausted. Peridot had spend the whole movie insisting she wasn’t scared, but Lapis could see her flinch each time the clown popped on screen. Lapis, on the other hand, didn’t care that she was easily spooked- she squeaked at every jumpscare, and they had to pause the movie to clean up spilled popcorn at least twice. 

By the end of the night, Lapis and Peridot felt like they had known each other for ages. They bickered like old friends, tossing pieces of popcorn at each other and laughing until their sides hurt. They ended up having to rewind the movie because they had been laughing all through the climax.

After the movie, Lapis planned to set Peridot up on the couch with fresh sheets and pillows. However, Peridot insisted she wasn’t tired, and asked if they could watch something else. The two girls eventually settled on  _ To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before:  _ Lapis had already seen it and Peridot was skeptical, but Lapis promised they could stop ten minutes in if she wasn’t hooked.

The vow turned out to be pointless, however, as the two girls were asleep, tangled on the couch before the opening credits rolled. 


End file.
